Title

Author

Date of Award

Degree Type

Degree Name

Department

Committee Chair

Committee Chair Department

Committee Member 2

Anne Sanow

Committee Member 2 Department

English

Committee Member 3

Justin Taylor

Committee Member 3 Department

English

Committee Member 4

Linda Allen

Committee Member 4 Department

English

Abstract

Blazing Worlds is a collection of short stories exploring themes of understanding, isolation, the world of work, and identity. These stories follow characters who are searching for connections to others, to their environments, to their work, and to themselves. The protagonists of these stories inhabit worlds that are slightly adjacent to reality, worlds cast into a near future, and worlds that operate by the logic of the campy and the fantastic. Through heightened technology, body horror, or blurred metaphysical boundaries, the residents of these blazing worlds pursue knowledge of their place in life and fight to establish and maintain their identities.